JJViofc JVk, 377.
TrZoro2t-5f;ecomie Cimnty, JV. CJ Tuesday, November 15, 183 t.
roi vmxo is.
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Mr. Calhoun's Reply to Major
Eaton.
From the Pendleton Messenger.
Major Eaton has in his late
address gratuitously dragged
my mime into his controversy
with a part of his associates in
the late administration. The
station which he recently occu
pied, and the relation in which
he is well known to stand to
the head of the executive branch
of the government, are calcula
ted to give more weight to his
representations, at least with
many, than what belongs to the
anonymous, communications of
the day; yet I could not have
deemed his statement worthy
of my notice had he confined
himself to the vague insinua
tions, which constitute the great
body of his address, as far as it
relates to me. To give color
to his general charges, he has
ventured in a few instances to
descend into detail, and to give
ulatemcnts of facts, but in a
manner wholly erroneous; which
however, might be received by
the public as true, were I to re
main silent. They have, in fact,
been already so received in
some respectable quarters. 1
am thus compelled in self de
fence to correct the errors of
his statement, as far as they
concern me. The occurrences,
which are the subject of his ad
dress, are of a characteAo ren
der me solicitous, that the part
I took in relation to them, should
be presented in the light in
which truth and justice require.
The memory of them will pro
bably out live the present day,
and a decent regard for the opi
nions of those who are to suc
ceed us, naturally makes me de
sirous that I should not seem to
have any other connection with
events little calculated to do
credit to the history of the day,
than what I in reality bad.
It is impossible to doubt, that
the main drift of Major Eaton's
address is to hold me up as the
real author of all the discord,
which is alleged to have pre
vailed in the late Cabinet, and
to which he endeavors to trace
its dissolution, and which he
would have the public believe,
originated in a low and misera
ble squabble on mv nurt. in re
lation to the succession to the
Presidential chair.
Willi this view, and in order
to rive a political aspect to the
refusal of .Mrs. Calhoun to visit
Tlrs. Eaton, he states that she
wnd myself called in the first in
stance on him and Mrs. Eaton
during their absence at Phila
delphia, intending it to be in
ferred, that in declining inter
course afterward.?, we were oc-
hiatcd by political motives, and
not by considerations connect
ed with duty. Unfortunately
for Major Eaton his statement
is not correct.' Mrs. Calhoun
never called on Mrs. Eaton at
the time he states, nor at any
other time before, or since, nor
did she ever leave her card for
her, nor authorize any one to
do so; and she is entirely igno
rant through what channel, or
by what agency her card could
come into his and Mrs. Eaton's
possession; to which, I add, that
it was not done with my agency,
or with my consent or know
ledge. If Major Eaton had re
flected, he would have seen
that there must have been, to
say the least, an imposition
somewhere. He slates, that
our visit took place while they
were in Philadelphia, and, of
course, preceded their call,
which, as he represents, took
place after their return, and
which he must know, according
to the usage that governs inter
course at the place, could not
occur. The Secretaries and
their families invariably, make
the first call on the Vice-President
and his family; and in con
formity with this ruhv Major
Eaton had called on me, on my
arrival at Washington before
his marriage, which I after
wards returned, and, not find
ing him at home, left my card.
This was probably, while he
was absent at Philadelphia, and
was the ouly intercourse I had
wilh him, as far as 1 can recol
lect, during the whole session,
except what took place in the
Senate chamber, or when we
casually met at parlies.
This is not the first time that
Mrs. Calhoun has contradicted
the statement that she had vis
ited Mrs. Eaton. It was re
ported at the time, that she had
visited Mrs. Eaton, and that her
card had been left. She then,
on all suitable occasions, con
tradicted it, as directly and
pointedly, as she now does, and
in particular to two ladies from
1 ennessce, (wives of members)
who then resided in un adjoin
ing hoarding-house.
The erroneous statement of
Maj. E. compels me to give a
correct version of what actually
occurretl; but which I never in
tended to intrude on the public,
and now state with great reluc
tance, even in sell defence.
When he and Mrs. Eaton made
their visit, I was not at home, as
he states, and did not return
till after thev had retired. When
I returned, Mrs. Calhoun men
tioned, they had been there,
and said she would not have
known who Mrs. Eaton was,
had she not been with Mrs. Ea
ton, as the servant had not an
nounced their names. She of
course treated them wilh civili
ty. She could not with propri
ety do otherwise. The rela
tion, which Mrs. Eaton bore to
the society of Washington, be
came the subject of some gene
ral remarks. The next morn
ing she informed me that she
had made up her mind not to re
turn her visit. She said, that
she considered herself in the
light of a stranger in the place;
that she knew nothing of Mrs.
Eaton, or the truth, or falsehood
of the imputation on her cha
racter; and that she conceived it
uu me uuiy oi airs, juuiuij,
if innocent, to open her inter
course with the ladies who resi
ded in the place, and who had
the best means of forming a
correct opinion of her conduct,
and not with those who, like
herself, had no means of form
ing a correct judgment. I re
plied, that 1 approved of her
decision, though I foresaw the
difficulties in which it would
probably involve me; but that I
viewed the question involved as
paramount to all political consi
derations, and was prepared to
meet the consequences, as to
myself, be they what they might.
So far from political motives
having any influence in the
course adopted, could they have
been permitted to have any
weight in the question, the very
reverse course would have been
pursued. The road to favor
and patronage lay directly be
fore me, could I have been base
enough to tread it. The inti
mate relation between Gen.
Jackson and Major Eaton, was
well known, as well as the in
terest that the former took in
Mrs. Eaton's case; but, as de
graded as 1 would have felt my
self, had 1 sought power in that
direction, ! would not have con
sidered the infamy less had we
adopted the course we did, from
any other motive. It was not,
in fact, a question of the exclu
sion of one already admitted in
to society, but the admission of
one already excluded. Before
her marriage, while she was
Mrs. Timberlake, she had not j
been admitted into the society
of Wahingtcn; and the real
question was, whether her mar
riage with Maj. Eaton, should
open the door already closed on
her, or, in other words, whether
official rank and patronage
t
should, or should not, prove pa
ramount to that censorship, !
which the sex exercises over it-j
self; and, on which, all must ac-,
knowledge, the purity and dig-l
nity of the female character
mainly depend. Had the case
been different, had a scheme
been formed to exclude Mrs.
Eaton, with political views, as
is insinuated, the folly would
have been equalled only by its
profligacy. Happily for our
country, this important censor
ship is too high and too pure to
be influenced by any political
considerations whatever. It is
equally beyond the scope of
power, or influence, to exclude
the virtuous and unsuspected
female from society, as experi
ence has found it is, to raise the
suspected to that elevation.
This point may now be consid
ered settled, unless, indeed, the
public should permit the fruits
of the great victory that has
been achieved, in favor of the
morals of the country, by the
high minded independence and
virtue of the ladies of Washing
ton, to be lost by perverted and
lalse representations of the real
question at issue.
With the same view, and not
much less erroneously, Major
Eaton has given a statement of
(ny application to him in favor
of a friend for the place of
Chief Clerk, in the War De
partment. He has so, drawn
up his statement, as to make an
impression, that I suspended all
official intercourse with him,
because he refused to comply
with my application. The fact
is far otherwise. It is true, that
at thcrequest of my friend, who
was also a warm and devoted
friend of Gen. Jackson, and had
suffered from his attachment to
him, I did present his name to
Maj. Eaton, and that 1 had no
oflicial intercourse with him af
terwards; but for a very differ
ent reason from what he alle
ges; a reason which every indi
vidual, who has even a mode
rate share of self-respect, must
deem amply sufficient, as a brief
statement of the facts will prove:
The application was made, not
at the early period he states,
(which was necessary to make
the impression he intends) when
it was known he was to be ap
pointed Secretary of War, but
after he was appointed, and
took possession of his office,
and, if it be material, long after
Mrs. Calhoun had declined to
return Mrs. Eaton's visit. 1
called at his office a day or two
before I left the city; I informed
him, that I called at the request
of my friend, simply to state my
impression of his qualification,
and not to urge his claim. Af
ter I had staled my impression
in my friend's favor, he told mo,
he was well satisfied with his
qualifications, but that he had
offered the place to another
gentleman, whom he named,
but informing me, at the same
time, if he should decline, my
friend would receive the ap
pointment. I remarked, that
ihe person to whom he hail of
fered the place, was perfectly
qualified, and that 1 could not
ay a word to weaken his claim.
Besides his qualifications, his
relation with me, was at least
as intimate and friendly, as his,
whose name 1 had presented,
and as between them, it could
not possibly be a source of of
fence, that the former was se
lected; which, all who know
me, will admit, when I say the
gentleman selected, was Col.
Gadsden. The next day, I re
ceived a letter from Governor
Hamilton, then a member of
Congress, lo whom Maj. Eaton
alludes, as my friend, stating
that he had made application to
Major Eaton in favor of the
person for whom I had applied,
with the favorable result of his
application. On the strength
of this as well as his promise to
me, 1 wrote lo my friend enclo
sing Gov. Hamilton's letter and
informed him he might expect
the appointment with confi
dence, its I felt almost certain
that Col. Gadsden would de
cline the office. lie did de
cline, but contrary to promise,
another person was appointed,
without giving me any explana
tion, then, or since. It was
this breach of promise, remain
ing still unexplained, which in
terposed a barrier on my part to
farther official intercourse be
tween us; and not, as Major
Eaton represents, the mere re
fusal to grant ihe appointment,
which of itself would never have
had the least effect wilh me.
If there should be an3Tdoubt'as
to the promise, or the time of
the application, the letter of
Gov. Hamilton to me, and mine
to my friend, both of which I
suppose lo be in existence, will
establish the correctness of my
statement.
Hut it seems that I am to be
held responsible for the suppo
sed feuds of the late Cabinet,
and its dissolution, because, as
Major Eaton states, an ardent
friend of the Vice-President
said in 1829, that Major Eaton
is not the friend of Mr. Calhoun.
It would have been much more
satisfactory, if Major Eaton had
given the name of this supposed
friend, with the time, place, and
circumstances, not only to cna
iIe him to give his statement of
the occurrence, but to afford nte
an opportunity of judging how
far I ought to be responsible. It
would have been both to him
and me an act of simple justice,
which as far as I am concerned,
would have been particularly
desirable, as I must object to
the competency of Major Ea
ton, and his associates, to deter
mine, who are, or who are not
my friends. They appear par
ticularly liable to error on this
point. But a short lime since,
it was gravely charged in an al
most official quarter, that my
friends had a meeting to expel
him from the Cabinet, when it
turned out, on further disclo
sures, that they were all gentle
men from the Western States,
Tennessee, Kentucky and Lou
isiana, and devoted friends to
Gen. Jackson, actuated solely
by a regard for the success and
honor of his administration; a
step, of the existence of which,
I was ignorant till after the
meeting, and, of the particulars,
till disclosed by the recent pub
lications. If to this. I add Ma
jor Eaton's own liability to fall
into error in determining who
are or are not my political
friends, as dirclosed in his late
address, it will not, I am sure,
be thought unreasonable, that I
should object to his competency
in that particular. When it i3
necessary to hold me responsi
ble for scenes, the odium of
which he shows uncommon
anxiety to shift to the shoulders
of others, he errs, on that point,
in relation to two of his late as
sociates in the administration.
If, in his anxiety to implicate
me, he mistake the political re
lations between Mr. Branch and
Mr. Berrien, and myself, gentle
men of whose sentiments one
would suppose he could not be
ignorant, we may reasonably
suppose, that he is equally mis
taken in the case under consi
deration. The inference he would draw
from Gen. Green's course, in re
lation to himself, can scarcely
deserve more than a passing no
tice. Gen. Green's course has
been of his own choosing, with
out any attempt on my part to
influence him. Such an at
tempt would indeed have been
perfectly idle. If he should be
supposed to be governed by
base and selfish views, how
could I influence him! 1 had
nothing to give, where he had
much to lose. On the contrary
supposition, that he was gov
erned by a sense of truth and
justice, an attempt to influence
him was unnecessary. My
course, I trust, afforded ample
motives of that description. If
it bad not, it would have Dccn m
vain in me, on the supposition
of his honesty to have attempt
ed to obtain his support; as it
clearly would have been, on the
opposite, to have obtained it at
ail. As I have been compelled
to speak of Gen. Green, it is